Law to Legalize Crypto Mining Introduced in Armenia

Armenia may soon follow in the footsteps of countries like Belarus in regards to crypto regulation. Newly proposed legislation provides the basis for legalizing and regulating cryptocurrency mining in the country. Tax exemptions and other incentives will be offered to miners. If the draft law is adopted, businesses will be able to operate mining facilities without any licensing. This will indirectly legalize cryptocurrency transactions.

The bill to regulate the mining of cryptocurrencies like bitcoin has been introduced in the parliament in Yerevan. If Armenian lawmakers vote for the new legislation, their country will become the second member-state of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) to demonstrate positive attitude towards the crypto sector. Belarus has already taken steps in that direction legalizing cryptocurrencies, regulating ICOs, and exempting miners from taxation.

The proposed amendments are quite liberal. Every private individual and corporate entity in Armenia would be allowed to set up facilities and start mining, Eurasia Daily reports. No special permits or licenses will be required. The draft exempts miners from taxation until December 31, 2023, and that incentive is retroactive. Mining companies may enjoy other benefits like preferential customs tariffs.

Behind the initiative to legalize cryptocurrency mining is Edmon Marukyan, member of the parliamentary minority, who says he was motivated by “the need to move with the times”. Despite his affiliation with the opposition, Marukyan may succeed in pushing through his Law “On Digital Technologies”, as there have been some positive developments in the same direction throughout the whole region.

Armenia’s neighbor Georgia is a real pioneer in crypto legalization among countries in the South Caucasus. The implementation of blockchain technologies there has been expanding for several years, in both the private and the public sector. The first bitcoin mining farm in Transcaucasia was set up in Georgia, and since 2016 the country’s land register has been maintained on a blockchain.